LAWES: EVEN I DIDN’T KNOW OFFSIDE LAW
RUGBY UNION was divided yet again last night by contentious officiating as England tried to come to terms with the decision to disallow a try which would have brought a famous win over the All Blacks. Bath flanker Sam Underhill touched down four minutes from the end of an epic Test at Twickenham. But the score was disallowed following a video referral that ruled Courtney Lawes was offside before charging down TJ Perenara’s kick to set up the try. Lawes admitted he was unclear on the rule. ‘In the moment I thought, “I am onside here, I’m going to charge it down”,’ he said. ‘I don’t know exactly what the offside line is.’ The decision has polarised opinion in the game. Even former referees were split in their views. Every aspect of this complex area has been the subject of
review and amendment, so it is no surprise this decision has been fiercely disputed. South African TMO Marius Jonker made the ruling, telling French referee Jerome Garces to reverse his on-field decision. That is despite an edict released by World Rugby just last week declaring that TMOs must offer guidance but allow the referees to make the final call, and that decisions must only be overturned when there is ‘CLEAR and OBVIOUS’ evidence (the words were capitalized for emphasis) that an incorrect decision has been made. In this instance, any evidence is marginal, so England have every right to believe that their hopes of victory were wrecked by a breach of protocol in terms of the TMO over-stepping the mark. Head coach Eddie Jones stopped short of a public protest, but said: ‘The players thought it was a try, but we are happy to follow what the TMO says.’ Speaking to the BBC, he added: ‘It’s difficult to swallow, but you have to and you have to respect the referee. That is enormously important. I was really proud of our players. They just got on with it and tried to win the game again. ‘It’s a real tribute to their character and how they respect the values of the game. We don’t challenge the referee on decisions and we don’t abuse him after the game.’ Underhill, the England flanker whose brilliant finish turned out to have been in vain, added: ‘It’s tough to take but it was marginal and that’s the game. Ultimately, the ref’s decision is final. If he says the grass is pink then the grass is pink.’ But New Zealand head coach Steve Hansen said: ‘There was no doubt he’s offside. He’s just about in the half-back’s back pocket. What was going through my mind was, “Are they going to be brave enough to make the right decision?”. They were.’ His captain, Kieran Read, added: ‘As soon as I saw it on the big screen, I thought it would be our penalty.’ Meanwhile, England intend to harness their sense of injustice by subjecting Japan to a backlash when they face them on Saturday. Jones said: ‘We want to smash them, physically smash them, because I know they’re going to come full of confidence. ‘I’ve heard some of the things they’ve said, they’ve been a bit cheeky so they better look out.’ Asked what advice he could give the side that he used to coach, Jones said: ‘Go to the temple and pray. We’re going to be absolutely ruthless. They’re a really well-coached side, Japan. We’re taking it seriously and that’s why we have to be absolutely ruthless.’